Illinois’ swimming team hopes new techniques and attention to detail will progress the team at this weekend’s meet, a home contest against Illinois State.

“The team atmosphere has been better than ever,” junior Alison Meng said. “Practices have been different compared to last year, which is good.”

The Illini have implemented new practice techniques this year, many of which have been brought to the team by new assistant coach Alec Hayden. Some include having sprinters spend long durations of time underwater, since sprinters spend the majority of a race underwater. He has also focused on underwater kicking, which he believes to be very important, since 60 percent of the race is spent kicking in the water. Hayden has also added one more day in the weight room to build the necessary strength for sprinters.

Hayden’s techniques are very current. Being just five years removed from competing himself, he keeps in contact with other coaches to stay abreast of new practice techniques. He tries to learn from what they are doing and to implement those techniques with his team. 

These new practices have helped his swimmers improve in their technique, most notably senior Courtney Pope. When Pope arrived on the team, she had been recruited as a distance swimmer. Having swam many different races in high school, the difference between distances was not extreme, but noticeable.

“After swimming at a sprint relay in the Big Ten championship my freshman year, I realized that I enjoyed swimming in them,” Pope said. “It was great for me to have that change happen at college, and I enjoy the strategy part of it.”

Hayden has not only helped Pope, but also the other sprinters on the team. Pope learned from Hayden about the differences in freestyles and the different techniques attributed to them, such as the hip-driven compared to the shoulder-driven techniques. Hayden motivates and challenges the swimmers, which helps promote the growth of each athlete. He also emphasizes strength for sprinters, as they have to push hard and be ready to compete in sprints.

“I want the girls to always be ready to go,” Hayden said. “They have to be ready to compete when it comes time to race.”

Head coach Sue Novitsky has also made it the team’s goal to focus on little details. Every second is important, which is something the team learned at Saturday’s meet against Oakland, where they lost a few races by hundredths of a second. At practice, she has been timing how fast turns are made. Hundredths of a second are important, especially during sprints and when there are multiple turns, which could add up to a second.

“The little mistakes can add up,” Novitsky said. “We have to minimize them to swim a more complete meet.”

The team has also learned that giving encouragement is a key part of the meet. As the team has grown during the season, they have realized how important it is to be supportive of each other outside of the pool. One of the ways the team has realized this is by cheering.

“We realized that it was an important part of the meet,” Meng said. “Getting up and cheering for each other, having a more positive team atmosphere is something that can help make a difference when we compete.”

In last year’s meet against Illinois State, the Redbirds had broken a multi-year losing streak to beat Illinois. 

“They haven’t forgotten about the loss,” Novistky said. “It’s in the back of their head.”

The Illini hope to have Pope racing for the team. The senior is heading to Chicago that day for a job interview, but should be able to make it back in time for the meet.

“Hopefully I’ll be able to make it,” Pope said. “I should be back just in time for the warmups.”  

Michal can be reached at [email protected] and @bennythebull94.